Of Misunderstandings
by Shingeki-no-Kenzie
Summary: Eren jumps to conclusions when he sees his boyfriend Levi with another man, prompting him to end the relationship and fall back into his old habit of sleeping (Sekaiichi Hatuskoi inspired)
1. Chapter 1

Eren didn't know what to feel as he gaped at the retreating figures that wove their way through the semi-busy lamplit street he had frozen to. The beginnings of tears rimmed his large turquoise eyes as he stared until they completely disappeared from view. _You knew this would happen _a quiet voice in the back of his mind told him. _He's been acting so distant lately. You knew he was getting bored of you. Don't you see? He doesn't want you anymore. He even used work as an excuse to meet up with blondie over there. _A salty tear made it's way down Eren's cheek before he turned on his heel and ran in the opposite direction, ducking into an alley and curling up beneath a stairwell, hoping no one would notice the pathetic little boy who had just got his heart broken.

Cut to several hours earlier.

"Let me do it."

"Don't get cocky brat, I can do it myself."

"No you can't, it always ends up crooked."

"It does not!"

Eren had had enough and simply grasped his boyfriend's tie, roughly pulling the shorter man towards him with a smirk as he untangled the garment and began to tie it properly.

"Seriously…" he muttered, not meeting the death glare Levi was shooting his way. "Shouldn't a clean freak like you at least know how to tie a tie properly?"

"I can tie it just fine, you never give me a chance, shitty brat." He spat, attempting to wrench from Eren's grasp once he had finished. The younger simply looped a tanned arm around Levi's waist, holding him firmly in place. He traced the older man's sides teasingly and flashed him a lopsided smile. "You're so cute when you're trying to tell fibs." He leaned in to pull Levi into a kiss and was abruptly shoved back by strength that always surprised him. He was about to continue teasing his boyfriend but let his arm drop when he saw the expression on Levi's face.

It wasn't his normal _Eren quit being a shitty brat _expression but something else reflected in those steely grey eyes. Was that… disgust, maybe? "Sorry." the younger muttered quietly, gaze dropping to the floor. He heard Levi pulling on a jacket and grabbing his briefcase. "Tch," he tsked, glancing at his phone, "I'm going to be late for work." He made a grab for the door when Eren stopped him by latching onto his wrist maybe just a little bit too firmly. "Uh.. do you wanna get dinner or something after work?" he asked hopefully, turquoise eyes meeting grey. Levi's thin eyebrows furrowed. "I'm working late tonight. Just pick up something from the convenience store tonight." He turned to leave. "Oh, but-" Eren interrupted, fidgeting slightly under the older man's stormy gaze. "I'll wait for you to get off work, even if it's late, then we can do something else-"

Levi wrenched himself from Eren's grasp. "Don't bother. I'll be working extremely late so just go to bed." The door shut in Eren's confused face. The boy listened to his boyfriend's receding footsteps until they faded completely, lettting himself sink to the ground against the polished wooden door of their apartment. Levi had been working late every day for weeks, and with Eren's part time job starting so early in the morning he could rarely wait up for his boyfriend. He felt as if an uncomfortable distance had been wedged between them. He knew it wasn't Levi's fault that his work required him to stay late, but there was still that nagging thought in the back of Eren's mind. _What if he doesn't like me anymore?_

No, he was overreacting. Levi was always horribly blunt with him, he wouldn't keep quiet about this kind thing… would he? _But then again _the young man thought, drawing his knees up close to his body and wrapping his long arms around them, _he pushed you away when you tried to kiss him just now. He almost look disgusted. _Resting his cheek against one of his knees, he let out a sigh. "I'll wait up for him anyway" he told no one in particular. "I'll make dinner, and then we straighten this out."

The morning rolled into afternoon which quickly faded into evening. Eren had spent the day cleaning the apartment up to Levi's standards in an attempt to please him and hadn't realized how late it had gotten. Grabbing the expensive black jacket Levi had bought him a month prior, he stuffed a wad of bills into one of the pockets and set off with the intention of buying some groceries, maybe some new manga, and just generally wasting time until Levi got off work around midnight.

It was dark enough that the old streetlamps adorning that particular area of the city were lit up, illuminating the snow that was falling softly into the street. Eren hummed absentmindedly to himself, arms laden with shopping bags of groceries and a few new books he had picked up in some of the old bookstores found scattered along the street. The books were a present for Levi, Eren knew he had a thing for old murder mysteries. His boyfriend was always buying things for Eren (expensive things, mind you) and making him feel extremely guilty so the younger occasionally took it upon himself to try and return the favor. He was about to head back to their shared apartment when he spotted a familiar figure that made him stop in his tracks.

Was he seeing things? No- the porcelain skin, raven hair styled in an undercut, thin perfect eyebrows and incredibly short stature couldn't have been anyone but Levi. Eren smiled to himself, coming to the conclusion that Levi must have gotten off early from work. He made towards the shorter man, about to call out to him with his arm raised in a half-wave when he noticed that his boyfriend wasn't alone.

No- Levi was walking side by side with a much taller and incredibly handsome blonde man who had just said something to send Levi into a fit of quiet laughter. He must have been pretty well built under that expensive suit and gave off an air of importance that-

_Wait. Laugh. He made Levi laugh._

Eren froze to the spot, mouth open as he stared at the pair. He very rarely made Levi smile, let alone laugh, and this blonde stranger had just done it like it was nothing. The longer Eren stared the more he realized. _The look perfect together, _the little voice in the back of his mind piped.

Cut to the present.

-_Thanks for reading! I'm not very good at writing angsty stuff but I plan to give this a few more chapters if anyone likes it.-_


	2. Chapter 2

_Note: The "3" after Levi's name is supposed to be a heart, but it doesn't show up_

When Eren finally managed to drag himself from beneath the stairwell he had curled up under, it was well past midnight. The young man's hands were raw and red from the hours of mild cold they had been exposed to but Eren barely seemed to take notice. His mind was numb. He glanced at the shopping bags he had brought with him. _No need for these anymore. _Using the stair rail for support he shakily lifted himself to his feet, stuffing his hands into the thick material of his jacket and slowly making his way from the damp alleyway he had fled to only a few hours before.

Eren made his way up the now-deserted street in the opposite direction of his apartment, contemplating his options. _I don't think I can go back there, not when…" _His thoughts trailed off, remembering the events leading up to his pathetic little display of curling up in the alley. Numb hands groped around large pockets, searching for extra money. As expected, he didn't have any left, hadn't even thought to bring his bank card with him. He had only intended to pick up some things for Levi and go right back to the apartment. Eren bit his lip, eyes stinging as fresh tears began to well up in the large turquoise orbs. He hastily wiped them away with his sleeve, sadness staining the expensive fabric.

Leaning up against a shop wall, he pulled out his phone and began thumbing through the short list of contacts, stopping on the very first one. _Armin Arlert._ Quickly pressing down the green "call" button, Eren chewed his lip and he waited for his friend to answer. No, _prayed _for his friend to answer because he sure as hell didn't want to have to call Mikasa and explain what had happened.

After a few rings, an audible "click" could be heard from the other end followed by a groggy "Eren? I was sleeping you know…"

Eren would have laughed at how out-of-it his friend sounded had the circumstances been any different. "Armin" he replied quickly, pressing the phone closer to his ear. "I'm sorry for bothering you at this hour but something happened and I…" _Oh no. _He could feel himself getting upset again as he recalled the night's events. "Would it be okay if I stayed at your place tonight?"

"What? Yeah of course, Eren, what… Eren are you crying?"

The brunette sniffed and hastily wiped his eyes on his sleeve again, staining the material once more. "Who's crying, moron? I'll be right over." His voice cracked and he slapped his free hand over his mouth. The blonde on the other end paused for a moment. "Do you need me to pick you up?" "No!" Eren replied a little too quickly. He needed a chance to pull himself together before facing Armin's questions. "I'll walk, I'm pretty close anyway. See you in a bit."

"Okay Eren, hurry over."

Click.

Eren shoved the phone back in his pocket and made his way towards Armin's apartment and found himself seated inside on a worn couch beside the concerned blonde about 20 minutes later.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked quietly, peering over at Eren beneath his shock of blonde hair. His friend was slumped on the couch, eyes downcast, chocolate hair covering most of his expression but Armin could see his mouth was turned down in sadness.

"Not really Armin.. I mean.." Eren started, looking up shyly to meet his friend's gaze. "Well, I'm 90% sure Levi is cheating on me, and I…" he trailed off, hiding his head in his hands. Armin scooted closer, draping an arm carefully over the boy's shoulders. "It's okay, Eren" he said softly, rubbing the brunette's shoulder encouragingly. "You don't have to tell me the details of what happened right now. I'm here if you want to, though, and you can stay here as long as you like."

Eren sniffed a little, pulling his gaze up and managing a small smile."That means a lot to me, it does. I just need to get some things sorted out and then I'll be out of your hair."

"Don't be stupid" the smaller boy scoffed, pulling Eren into a hug. Eren grinned, returning the favor. "Thanks Armin, really."

-x-

Eren blinked groggily as he pulled his quilt up to shield himself from the sunlight filtering in through Armin's living room window. He grumbled to himself, turning to his side as he struggled to recall last night's events. _Oh. _

Sitting up slowly, he let the blanket drop as he surveyed the room. Armin's apartment would have been neat if there weren't books _everywhere. _Some where crammed into the small bookshelf, others stacked in the corner, others lay open haphazardly throughout the room. His friend owned every kind of book imaginable, from university textbooks to children's stories. Everything in the room even had that old-book smell. Eren swallowed guiltily when he realized he could have given Armin those books he had bought for Levi.

Right on cue, the blonde entered the space holding a steaming cup of tea, which Eren accepted gratefully. Armin nudged the taller with his knee, signalling him to scoot over.

"Took you long enough, sleeping beauty, have a good sleep?" Armin grinned sheepishly as Eren shot him a half-hearted glare. "Fantastic." he replied, rolling his eyes and blowing on the steaming liquid his friend had brought him. The boy pulled his knees up to his chest. "So, what're you going to do now?"

Eren tapped his finger along the side of the mug, listening to the dull ringing it produced. He sipped thoughtfully. "Well, Levi should be at work so I figure it's safe to go back to the apartment so I can grab some clothes and stuff." Armin nodded beside him. "Oh" he said, leaving the room for a moment and returning with something small in his hand. "Your phone. It;s been going off like crazy ever since you got here."

Eren gingerly took the phone in his tanned fingers.

_3 missed calls from: Levi3_

_5 new messages from: Levi3_

Eren's heart sped up slightly, had Levi been concerned about him? He quickly opened up the messages he had missed.

_Where are you? _

_You can at least telling me if you're going out you damn brat_

_Eren?_

_Quit being a shitty brat._

_Are you okay? Did something happen? Where are you?_

Eren's eyes had widened in surprised. His boyfriend rarely sent him text messages, let alone five in a row. He had even called a few times. The brunette's lips began to curl back into a smile when he remembered the way Levi and that blonde man had looked the night previous. _Perfect. They looked absolutely perfect together. And Levi was laughing and smiling. He was meeting with some stranger when he was supposed to be at work. _His heart sank into the pit of his stomach. Slowly, he switched off his phone and set it atop Armin's crowded table. He turned to his friend and smiled sadly.

-x-

Eren stayed at Armin's place for the duration of the following week. While Levi was at work he had managed to sneak some of his clothes as well as his wallet from the shared apartment. He called in sick for the week at the small cafe he worked at, it was a place Levi frequented and he didn't want to risk running into his ex-lover. During this time he had kept his phone turned off, he didn't want to talk to the man who had broken his heart.

It was Saturday, and Eren had just returned to his friend's apartment after a long shift. Armin was still out, he noted, probably working part-time at the old bookstore down the street. Sighing, Eren pulled off his jacket and plopped down on the worn couch. Armin was almost always here at the same time he was so he rarely got bored, but the blonde's absence left him feeling strangely lonely. He wasn't used to being by himself. Eren eyed the phone he had placed on Armin's coffee table the week previous, extremely tempted to reach out and turn it on. He would have to face Levi eventually… right? What did he intend to do when he did finally talk to his boyfriend again? Confront him? Act as is he hadn't seen anything? Break up with him?

That last though caused Eren to freeze, tanned arm outstretched towards the ornate coffee table laden in what appeared to be Shakespeare. Did he want to break up with Levi? _He cheated on you _the voice in the back on his mind reminded him. _He's probably cheating on you right now. Why stay with someone who doesn't even love you?_

That's right. Eren would end it with Levi, send him a quick text message and be done with it. He was naive to think that their relationship was anything more than a fling. Despite Eren's constant confessions, Levi hadn't even told Eren that he loved him. _And he was grossed out the last time you tried to kiss him…_

Slowly, he grasped the phone between his long fingers, holding the start button and watched the dim screen as phone came to life. He numbly thumbed through the long list of new messages, all from "Levi3" deleting them as he went. If he read the messages it would only make his heart hurt more. Hell, Levi could have even broken up with him in one of those texts but Eren didn't pause to check. His thumb hovered above the keys as he began to type out his farewell when the phone suddenly buzzed, shocking the boy so much he dropped it onto the ground.

Scrambling, he hastily picked it back up and stared at the screen.

_Incoming call from: Levi3_

The brunette chewed his lip hastily, fidgeting nervously in his seat.

_What should I do what should I do what should I- _click.

Shakily, Eren pressed the phone to his ear.

"Eren?"

The voice on the other end was low and smooth, shot with concern. It surprised Eren, Levi didn't normally let his emotions show like that.

"Eren is that you? Where have you been, I've been worried sick, you haven't been answering you phone-"

"Levi" Eren cut him off softly, digging his nails into his thigh to keep from breaking down. "Is there something you need to tell me?"

A pregnant pause. "What?"

The brunette laughed bitterly, amazed at how genuinely confused sounding Levi could act. Had he no shame? "So that's how it is. Well, don't worry Levi you won't need to deal with me anymore. Listen, it was fun playing around with you-"

"Eren-"

"But staying with the same person for so long gets boring, you know? I'm done messing around-"

"Eren wait-"

"Go back to your boyfriend or whoever the hell he is. You guys look great together, really."

"Eren!"

"Don't call me again."

Click.

_-Thinking about maybe doing a chapter on the Levi and Eren's backstory. Sorry if this chapter was boring but I want to build it up a bit-_


End file.
